BIOLOGY

Thirty-five million people worldwide are currently living with HIV-1/AIDS. Broadly neutralizing antibodies (bnAbs) have been isolated from some patients with HIV-1, and these antibodies recognize and inhibit a range of HIV-1 variants. Strategies to enhance the potency and breadth of these bnAbs have the potential to inform the development of an effective HIV-1 vaccine. A new study in the Journal of Clinical Investigation reveals that increasing the stability of an HIV-1-targeting bnAb improves efficacy. James Crowe and colleagues at Vanderbilt University used computational software to design variants of a previously isolated HIV-1 bnAb. One of these variant antibodies was able to neutralize multiple HIV-1 strains, including strains that are resistant to the naturally occurring form of this bnAb. The increased ability of the computer-designed bnAb variant was due to enhanced stability. The results of this study provide important insight into factors that improve bnAb potency and may lead to more successful HIV-1 vaccines.